Review of Jason and the Argonauts (1963) by Will E — 11 Apr 2011

An entertaining epic that should be commended for its campiness as well as its class, Jason and the Argonauts is a technological marvel of its time, seamlessly blending the worlds of stop-motion animation with live action adventure. At the time was surely innovative, today the effects are corny enough to hold entertainment value, with enough self-aware assuredness to warrant at least one viewing. Probably more suited to the a younger audience, one who has not yet embraced the near-uncanny valley CGI of modern day cinema, as well as the adults who enjoy engaging in cinematic history. Like all films though, it has it's downfalls. Mostly, the film lacks a strong cast, and allows some it's more prominent and interesting characters to sink into the background very early in the story. Numerous plot lines are implied or even mentioned explicitly which never amount to anything, and at its end it is obvious that a concluding or continuing chapter was at least planned. I don't know if such a film exists (if so please inform me), but without it Jason and the Argonauts is effectively unfinished, and this feeling does betray the experience somewhat, however overall the film does hold its own against the modern epics, and does deserve to be ranked with the best of them.

My Rating: 80%.

Standardised: 60%.